Académique Documents
Professionnel Documents
Culture Documents
Journal of Willingness
Economics and
to Pay
Management
in Taman 2(1):
Negara:
81 A
– 94
Contingent
(2008) Valuation Method
ISSN 1823 - 836X
ABSTRACT
The main attractions of national parks include its scenic beauty,
rainforest and wildlife. An appropriate pricing policy in national parks
can be used as a tool to not only achieve successful and sustainable
management of national parks, but also provide quality products and
services at fair prices to visitors. The central question is how to establish
an appropriate pricing policy for national parks? Park resources such
as scenic beauty and conservation of endangered species are not traded
in the market place like many other commodities so they require the
use of non-market valuation techniques. One of the methods commonly
used for non-market valuation is the Contingent Valuation Method
(CVM). With Willingness to Pay (WTP) as the elicitation method, CVM
was used to determine the appropriate pricing policy for the sustainable
management of Taman Negara National Park (TNNP). Respondents
were asked the maximum amount they were willing to pay for the non-
market goods available at TNNP. This provided an estimate of the mean
values for setting the price for licenses and permits. In addition to
estimating the mean values, the study also identifies socio-demography,
visit and paying characteristics of visitors. The study employs 180
visitors to TNNP, who participated in closed-ended questionnaires
through interviews. Findings of the study reveal that visitors were willing
to pay more for entrance fees. This study presents implications to policy
makers to guide future management of TNNP. Results of this study
facilitate in establishing an efficient and realistic pricing policy for
TNNP.
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International Journal of Economics and Management
INTRODUCTION
Ecotourism became a buzzword in the early 1990s. Tourism is the world’s fastest
growing industry and its fastest growing component is ecotourism (Ecotourism
Society, 1998). Ecotourism growth is estimated at 10-15 % annually (Lindberg,
1991). Ecotourism/nature tourism was growing globally three times faster than
the tourism industry as a whole in 2004 (The International Ecotourism Society
[TIES], 2005). In the context of Malaysia, ecotourism is also the fastest growing
form of tourism. An estimated amount of 481,900 or 6.7 % of the more than 7
million tourists into Malaysia in 1994 were involved in the ecotourism industry
(Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment [MOSTE], 1998). Ecotourism
in Malaysia is primarily dominated by the tropical rainforest, marine ecosystems
and wetland ecosystems (MOSTE, 1998).
Sustainable tourism has become a catch-all phrase for forms of tourism
development. Ecotourism is considered the most typical form of sustainable tourism.
One of the criteria of sustainable tourism is the optimal use of all resources, while
simultaneously maintaining ecological processes and conserving natural heritage
and biodiversity (UNEP, 2006). A critical question here is how to manage all
these resources to reach sustainable tourism. Under certain circumstances, the
market for environmental goods and services do not exist or are not well-designed.
A viable alternative may be the use of the constructed or hypothetical market
approach i.e., the Contingent Valuation Method (CVM). The CVM elicits consumer
preferences of goods and services that are not traded directly to the consumer in
the market. Monetary values of the environmental goods and services is established
through the setting up of a ‘hypothetical’ market. A survey question is used to
elicit willingness to pay (WTP) for a hypothetical provision of environmental goods
and services.
This paper presents the findings on the investigation of the WTP study among
visitors to Taman Negara National Park (TNNP). Findings of this study provide
valuable information to TNNP to devise the charges of permits and licenses
especially the entrance permit which has been implemented since the 1970s. The
specific objectives of this study are: (1) To identify the socio-demography of
visitors; (2) To identify the characteristics of visits of visitors; and (3) To identify
the characteristics of paying and any differences in WTP among visitors.
Definitions of Ecotourism
Terms like nature-based tourism, environment-friendly tourism, alternative,
responsible, ethical, sustainable, green and appropriate tourisms have all been used
to refer to ecotourism (Valentine, 1993:108). Similarly, numerous definitions of
ecotourism exist. Hector Ceballos-Lascurain (1988:14) defined ecotourism as:
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Willingness to Pay in Taman Negara: A Contingent Valuation Method
This study will also adopt this definition. This definition has been endorsed
by the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Tourism (MOCAT, 1996). The definition
stresses: (1) low impact on the environment and on local culture; (2) covers nature
as well as culture; (3) prevention of damage as far as possible; (4) repairing whatever
damage is unavoidable; and (5) benefits for the people of the area. This definition
is a blend of other definitions, and highlights the fundamental components of
ecotourism.
Several other definitions of ecotourism are ‘responsible travel to natural areas
that conserves the environment and improves the welfare of local people’ (Western
1993:8) and ‘nature-based tourism that involves education and interpretation of
the natural environment and is managed to be ecologically sustainable’ (Australian
Commonwealth Department of Tourism, 1994: 17). All these definitions mention
three main components of ecotourism namely, (1) nature-based; (2)
environmentally-educative; and (3) sustainably-managed. These three main
components are called the ‘three dimensions’ of ecotourism (Blamey, 2001). A
more recent definition of ecotourism by (Fennell, 1999) has included all three
dimensions of ecotourism Fennell’s definition is as follows:
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International Journal of Economics and Management
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Willingness to Pay in Taman Negara: A Contingent Valuation Method
Table 2 lists the charges at TNNP. TNNP imposes six types of charges. Each
visitor to TNNP must obtain an entrance permit, which costs RM1.00 per entry.
Other charges would depend on the visitors’ activities. This study only focuses on
the entrance permit.
METHODOLOGY
A questionnaire was designed to gain information on WTP in this study. The Survey
questionnaire was chosen because it encourages high response rates, provides
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International Journal of Economics and Management
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Willingness to Pay in Taman Negara: A Contingent Valuation Method
speaker. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was chosen to analyse the
visitors’ data. Descriptive analyses such as mean and frequencies were applied to
obtain information on socio demographic and economic profiles and respondents’
WTP.
Survey Findings
Visitors’ Profiles
Table 4 displays the summary of the visitors’ profiles. By gender, the majority of
visitors (60.0%) were male. More than half (53.3%) were married. Most of the
visitors (41.7%) were between 26 to 35 years old, followed by the age group 18 to
25 years old (31.7%). More than half (55.6%) of the visitors were international
while the rest (44.4%) were Malaysians. In terms of educational background, 27.2%
of the visitors had completed secondary education followed by 26.7% and 23.9%
had attained first degrees and masters/PhD, respectively. Most visitors (30.0%)
held professional jobs such as teachers and doctors. The second and third highest
group of visitors were skilled non-manual (18.9%) and skilled manual (17.2%)
workers. In terms of income, majority of visitors (52.8%) earned an income of less
than US$1000. This was followed by an income group of between US$1001-
US$2000 (17.2%). Most of the visitors in this study (46.7 %) had paid for an
entrance permit (during visits to other national park). Majority of visitors (53.9%)
Characteristics Percentage n
Gender
Male 60.0 108
Female 40.0 72
Marital status
Single 45.0 81
Married/partner 53.3 96
Prefer not to say 1.7 3
Age
18-25 31.7 57
26-35 41.7 75
36-45 15.6 28
46-55 8.9 16
56-65 2.2 4
65 + 0.0 0
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International Journal of Economics and Management
Nationality
Malaysian 44.4 80
International 55.6 100
Education level
No formal education 0 0
Primary school 0.6 1
Secondary school 27.2 39
Diploma 21.7 39
First degree 26.7 48
Masters/PhD 23.9 43
Occupation
Professional 30.0 54
Managerial 5.6 10
Skilled non-manual 18.9 34
Skilled manual 17.2 31
Unskilled non-manual 12.2 4
Unskilled manual 2.2 4
Retired 5.0 9
Student 2.8 5
Not working for medical reasons 1.7 3
Unemployed 4.4 8
Payment history
Paid 46.7 84
Never paid 53.3 96
Contribution to WWF
Have contributed 53.9 97
Never contributed 46.1 83
Members
Member 17.8 32
Non-member 82.2 14
Source: Author survey (2004)
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Willingness to Pay in Taman Negara: A Contingent Valuation Method
had made a contribution to World Wildlife Fund (WWF), while only 17.8% of
them were members of environmental organizations.
Characteristics of Visit
Table 5 outlines the characteristics of TNNP visits. An overwhelming majority
obtained information about TNNP from travel guidebooks such as Lonely Planet
(95 responses) and family and friends (91 responses). Most of the visitors associated
TNNP with the rainforest (158 responses), diversity of species of flora and fauna
(93 responses) and wildlife (93 responses). The most popular type of transportation
to TNNP was private car (25.4%) followed by tour bus (23.0%), public bus (21.0%)
and boat (12.1%). Chalets were the most popular type of accommodation at TNNP
Visitors
Characteristics (Number of
responses/frequency)
Source of information
Advertisement 55
Travel agent 23
Travel guidebook 95
Internet 46
Travel brochure 47
Family and friends 91
Tour guide 9
TNNP Characteristics
Rainforest 158
Aboriginal 35
Flora and fauna 93
Scenic beauty 90
Recreation 50
Wildlife 93
Transportation mode
Public bus 21
Train 11.3
Private car 25.4
Tour bus 23
Flight 2.8
Boat 12.1
Taxi 4.4
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International Journal of Economics and Management
Accommodation type
Chalet 61.8
Hostel/dorm 21.5
Camping 9.3
Hide 5.4
Cave 2.0
Number of nights
<1 17.2
1-2 57.8
3-4 23.3
>5 1.7
(61.8 %), followed by hostel/dormitory (21.5%) and camping (9.3%). More than
half (57.8%) of the visitors stayed an average of two nights. Only 1.7% stayed for
a longer period (more than five days). The most important reason for visiting
TNNP was for a new experience (93.3%). The second and third most popular
reasons were holiday (90.0%) and to enjoy the natural beauty of the rainforest
(72.8%).
Characteristics of Paying
This section reports the willingness of visitors to pay a higher cost for an entrance
permit. Respondents were given three different prices of entrance permit: low
(RM3), medium (RM 10) and high (RM30). The three different prices (RM3, RM10
and RM30) were chosen to suit both Malaysian and international visitors and the
price was raised until it reached the visitors’ maximum bid. Figure 1 is a diagram
displaying visitors’ responses to the three different prices of entrance permit. The
probability of saying ‘yes’ decreased as the entrance permit fee increased. The
majority of visitors (80.6%) were willing to pay if the entrance permit was RM3.
On the other hand, only 15% answered ‘yes’ when the price reached RM30. From
Table 6, more than half (56.1%) wanted charges for entrance permit to go towards
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Willingness to Pay in Taman Negara: A Contingent Valuation Method
160 152
145
140
120 110
100
Percentage
RM3
80 70 RM10
RM30
60
40 35
28
20
0
Yes No
Entrance permit (RM)
Total 180
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International Journal of Economics and Management
the conservation and preservation of the park for future generations. Among other
motivations for the charges of entrance permit were for the entrance and use of
recreational facilities (23.9%) and for better recreational facilities (11.1%).
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Willingness to Pay in Taman Negara: A Contingent Valuation Method
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